If he wouldn't have been fired, it looks like health reasons would have forced Joe Paterno to retire this year.

The sick former Penn State football coach has been admitted into the hospital again. His family hopes the stay is brief, but Paterno was hospitalized for minor complications from his ongoing lung cancer treatments just a month after fracturing his pelvis.

Things aren't all bad for the all-time winningest football coach in NCAA Division I history. PSU officials revealed on Thursday that Paterno is still getting paid despite being relieved of his coaching duties last fall after the Jerry Sandusky sex scandal broke.

A statement from Chairman Steve Garban and Vice Chairman John Surmaread:

"Coach Paterno remains employed by the university as a tenured faculty member. The details of his retirement are being worked out and will be made public when they are finalized. Generally speaking, the university intends to honor the terms of his employment contract and is treating him financially as if he had retired at the end of the 2011 football season."

We hope this guy's health starts to turn around soon and he's able to beat this cancer! Feel better soon, Joe!